bar, but he might as well have been pounding his chest. “I’ll make them winners. Gideon will make them solvent.”
“Yep,” Gideon said.
“And Coop will create a plan to sell more tickets than any other professional farm team.” Ty’s fist hit the bar one more time.
Nadine walked by wearing a hot pink sweater, which reminded Coop of Zoe, of Nora, of Pop and what he’d be missing if he left Alaska.
“Together. Right?” Ty slapped Gideon and Coop on the back.
“Right,” Coop said with false enthusiasm.
* * *
“BRAD, WHAT EVER happened to your Mrs. Hamilton?” Nora was settled in the corner of Coop’s couch, a sleeping Zoe snuggled in her arms.
Coop’s father muted the big screen, looking as if he’d smelled one of Zoe’s poopy diapers. “Kathy decided I wasn’t the man for her. Then she decided Alaska wasn’t the place for her. And then she decided being a mother wasn’t the role for her.” There was a coldness in his words that rivaled the below-freezing temperature outside. “I could have forgiven her everything but the last.”
Nora brought Zoe a little closer. Poor Coop. “How old was he?”
“Nine.” The older man cleared his throat. “He’d always been the outgoing, trusting type, but that...that changed him. He was only outgoing after that. Other than Gideon and Ty, he didn’t let people get close.”
“No one?”
“No one.”
And yet he’d asked Nora to stay.
Because of Zoe. It had to be because of Zoe.
But there was that kiss...
The volume on the television went back up. Zoe blew a gentle bubble in her sleep.
And Nora couldn’t stop thinking about a little boy with a broken heart and an infectious smile.
* * *
THE CROWD OF singles for the ATV social was promising: six women and nine men, including the three matchmakers. They had many other candidates that couldn’t make the event. Talk and laughter greeted the dawn.
Gideon moved discreetly between their clients, mentioning names the refined survey had suggested might be their soul mates. With the supplemental test, Coop had been paired with Nora, which gave Coop an annoying feeling of warmth in his chest. Love and responsibility had kept him in K-Bay the last time he tried to leave. He wouldn’t let a third chance pass him by, even if it meant risking a relationship with his daughter. Coop had to take this one last shot at greatness.
He and Nora had fallen into an easy rhythm during the week since she’d come to K-Bay. Coop made coffee in the early morning when Zoe awoke and wanted breakfast. After her feeding, he walked and burped the baby while Nora ate. The snow had let up enough to re-open the car lot. Coop came home for lunch. He cooked dinner. He took Nora and the baby to the bar for an hour or so in the evening for informal mixers. But there’d been no more kisses, no more getting carried away on Coop’s part and nearly promising Nora more than he could give.
Nope. They talked about inconsequential things, as if they worked in the same office together. He didn’t admit he couldn’t stop thinking about fatherhood. She didn’t admit he continued to fall short of her fatherhood standards. And Coop was relieved because he didn’t have to choose between his dreams and responsibility.
“Not him.” The distaste in Tatiana’s rising voice killed the positive energy of the ATV crowd. “I’ve dated beards like that. Never again will these cheeks receive beard burns.”
Almost as one, the men placed hands over their bearded chins, even Coop.
A week. They’d been at this a week and no one had rung the bell. And no one would today if Tatiana kept this up.
Gideon drew Tatiana aside and spoke to her in a low voice. The women tried to pretend there was no tension in the air. The sun was out and the snow was melting, especially on the southern mountain trail they planned to ride today. Everything seemed promising except for Tatiana, who was playing Princess Pouty. And Ty, who was pacing.
Nora stood outside the Bar & Grill, shading Zoe’s eyes from the bright morning sunshine.
Time to get this show on the off-road. “I need everyone in the Suburbans. Ladies, you need to sit with one of the men Gideon brought to your attention.” Coop had taken two large SUVs off his lot and rented two large trailers, which he’d filled with every two-seater ATV he could borrow or rent in town.
The day wasn’t all about matchmaking. He was hoping to sell a Suburban to Mike. It was large enough he could take all his fishing buddies in the eight-seater. Coop was also hoping for a kiss for luck from Nora. One without strings.
He had a better chance of selling a Suburban.
“What time will you be back?” Nora asked when Coop came to say goodbye.
“Worried about me?” The wind whistled between the buildings. Coop adjusted Zoe’s stocking cap more firmly around her little ears.
“I’m a mother. I worry about everything.” At his frown she added, “I worry this matchmaking thing is going to blow up in your face. And I’m worried someone out here is going to get their feelings hurt.”
Mine. When you leave and take Zoe.
He had a thing for her. Couldn’t she tell? The wind reached its cold hands inside his jacket and shook the material, covering up Coop’s shock at the increasingly strong sentiment that he didn’t want Nora and Zoe to go.
“If you and your friends are serious about matchmaking, you should charge for these things.” She half turned away from him, sheltering Zoe from the wind.
“We’re serious.” About winning the bet and getting out of Alaska. “This kind of work can open doors for us.”
“I hope you don’t mean bedroom doors.” Her smile sparkled as bright as sunshine on a snowdrift.
Would Nora want to leave? To go through that open door with him? “Have you ever thought about moving away from Alaska?”
“No.” Her brow furrowed. “Why would I? My older brothers live here.”
The hopes he hadn’t acknowledged fell. Nora wanted to stay. He wanted to go. Yet he couldn’t quite let loose the idea. “What if there was a job waiting for you in another state?”
Her gaze turned suspicious. “I thought you were serious about the matchmaker business, about building something and...”
“I am, but I’m also not close-minded about better jobs elsewhere.” And then he made a tactical error. “We made a bet with Coach about the matchmaking and if we win...”
“You made a bet involving a job?” Clouds of frost emitted from her mouth and chilled him. “Is this a game to you?”
“No. Keep your voice down.” He took her arm and walked
